First of all I’m sorry I have been inactive between Christmas and now but this is due to simply wanting some quality time with family. This has been my first Christmas since I’ve been working that I actually didn’t get a lot of time off so I made the most of it by not being glued to my laptop everyday.

I hope you all had a fantastic Christmas and New Year I certainly did and I’ve loved reading through my bloglovin’ feed over this festive period. I’m not usually one for New Years Resolutions but with my blog coming up to being 1 year old I thought I could set some resolutions for myself and my little ol’ blog.

Myself and Alex on NYE

1. I’m going to try be more healthy, that’s right I’m going to drink more water, do a little more exercise and eat more good foods. My skin is disgusting right now so this may be a New Years Resolution that will help!

2. (Linked in with number one) I want to control my skin, I am oily (Really Oily) so this year I’m going to find a skincare routine that is unbreakable and which will control my oily, spot prone skin!

3. Organisation is key, last year I was so unorganised and with this year being a pretty big one with it being my 21st this month, my boyfriends 21st in may and so on I will be an organised person.

5. I want to get a job I love. It’s no secret that I’m unhappy in my job right now and I want to make this the priority.

6. Spend more quality time with family and stop being glued to social media. This means some scheduling apps maybe? I spent most of 2014 neglecting my boyfriend for Twitter which I felt super bad about esp when he said ‘there is three people in this relationship, me, you and your blog’ oops.

Not bad for a girl who never makes new years resolutions aye? I’d love to know what your New Years Resolutions are and if your a keeper or a breaker of them! I’m going to do my best to keep these too as my first official set of resolutions, which isn’t looking too good as I’m writing this post with a large glass of southern comfort and lemonade… I’ll start being good tomorrow!

I am a massive fan of Essence products so when I recieved a mysterious package which contained a makeup bag full of essence products I could have simply cried with joy! So after having this gorgeous bundle of products for a couple of days I thought this was the perfect time to show you how I’ve got involved with Essence’s £10 Challenge… just in time for the new year when let’s face it we’re all counting the pennies after Christmas!

I’ve stayed within the festive season as it’s good to stay merry throughout December and even January for me! It took me absolutely ages to decide what products to use and within the £10 budget I really struggled because I wanted to wear it all its all so pretty!!

This all come in for £9.75 which is amazing for a full face of makeup! I’m pretty surprised I picked the Eye Shadow because I’m awful at it, but being honest I don’t think it looks too bad on the finishing photo’s so I’ll pat myself on the back for the effort. I’ve always found Essence products to be amazing quality and extremely affordable! 0.99p for a lip liner/eyeliner I think that’s amazing quality/price.

I’d wear this look out for a festive drink or two and I will be doing a full review on the Lip Liner because I love it so much!

I’d like to personally thank essence for sending me the lovely bag full of goodies, I’ll be sure to show a few more looks from the essence bag soon!

We’re half way through the December month now and it’s getting colder in a morning darker earlier in an evening and I love it. Not the cold weather of course but the darkening of the evenings yes!

This morning I’ve been particularly tired after last minute Christmas shopping at Meadowhall (hell) and its made me reflect on what I think Christmas actually means to me, when your little it’s all about getting presents from Santa and playing until your hearts content, now it’s a lot different. With me turning 21 next month it feels like I’ve grown up such a lot and not known where the time has gone.

My 5 Favourite Things About Christmas

1. Cosy Clothes, there is nothing better than cuddling up on the sofa in a pair of comfy pjs or joggers with your favourite pair of fluffy socks on, literally nothing! Being comfy is my up most favourite thing about Christmas!

Blogging in bed with my kitty cat asleep

2. Being around family, this is my joint favourite with being comfy, I love being able to cuddle up with my dad and step-mum watching a series we all like or having my younger sister come and cuddle up to me in my bed while we watch an old kids film. Best part is that I love cuddling up with my boyfriend in the Christmas period. Me and Alex don’t get to see each other on Christmas Day so our Christmas is on the 27th December (until we have our own place) which sucks but at the same time its the best of both worlds. We both get to spend actual Christmas with our parents and then the 27th through the new year is our Christmas time.

(L-R)Little Sister, Step-mum, Grandparents, Boyfriend, Drunken Dad

3. DISNEY MOVIES with the exception of Muppets Christmas Carol, I know this isn’t a Disney movie but it’s my favourite Christmas film. I will sit and watch Disney movies all day every day if I could. But sadly I have to work so I can’t. We have traditions in our home and since my dad and real mum split and he met my step-mum we have always had these traditions. We get up in a morning and watch Garfield’s Christmas Special and can you believe this is a VHS, YES A VHS (Video). Then we open presents and have dinner then we watch Aladdin on DVD we aren’t that old fashioned.

4. Christmas Dinner, I am a huge sucker for a roast dinner so Christmas dinner is my absolute favourite especially with all the trimmings! Even though there is four of us in my house, me, my dad, my sister and step-mum, my step-mum still cooks two meats for Christmas day so not only do we have a full small turkey we have a joint of pork too! Along with all the trimmings we could eat Christmas dinner for a week with all the leftovers.

5. Dressing of the tree and Christmas decorations of the house is probably my fifth favourite! It get’s me in the Christmas mood! I love putting up lights at my boyfriends parents house as his mum definitely loves Christmas. I love putting up the tree at my own home with my dad and younger sister who should love doing this more than me but it’s always me who ends up dressing the tree.

In a nut shell Christmas to me now is all about the people I’m with, I don’t need hundreds of presents anymore now that I’m older. Christmas to me is a time to share and spend with family and closest friends and you lovely people who read my blog. If you would like to hear about my top 5 Christmas films and a few Christmas recipes from me and my step-mum (she used to be a chef) let me know I’d love to share a bit of our Christmas with all you guys!

As it’s coming up to Christmas quicker than I can keep up with I thought I would let you lovely people into a little bit of my social life. The bit I have anyway! This weekend it’s were boyfriends work’s Christmas meal which is always a dilemma for me where the wardrobe is concerned as he is a plumber and I never know what the dress code is. Normally I would go for a dress but as I’ve been so ill of recent I have decided on something a little warmer and a little more me.

The weekend before last I went shopping and as normal I popped into the usual shops, is it just me or is Topshop going a little downhill of recent? I normally don’t find anything I like in Topshop but on a chance I popped in and actually found a gorgeous red shirt in which I knew would go perfect with a pair of leggings I had brought from River Island so I was pretty happy. The leggings I had bought are gorgeous I saw them upon passing and as we were in Cardiff for the Saturday as we had watched Lee Evans Monsters on the Friday night I thought I could pick them up there. Well I couldn’t have been more wrong. Looked all over Cardiff’s River Island and not a sight of these leggings I had fallen in love with so I ended up getting them back in Bristol where I had first originally seen them!

On the night I went for the warm option of clothing which when outside I was still freezing but hey ho! I opted for River Island Black Herringbone High Waisted Leggings in a size 8. They fit gorgeously, true to size and so comfortable. Then for the top I had my basic cami from H&M because they are so comfortable! Then over the top of that I opted for a cute Topshop Drape Front Blouse (size 6) in a wine red colour. Its gorgeous a little low cut hense the black cami underneath! That was my outfit completed other than my gorgeous shoes from New Look (link) they perfected my outfit and at least I didn’t feel so short.

To think the boyfriend was going to wear a Christmas jumper out was laughable luckily me and his mum sorted him out and got him looking decent. We had the meal in Bristol Cosy Club, its a gorgeous place so if your ever in Bristol do go there! The ceilings were a mile high and it had gorgeous chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. Luckily for me (not) my boyfriend and the company he works for actually did all the plumbing in the Bristol cosy club so I got lectured on what toilets the boyfriend had fitted and what pane of glass fell out of the upper store bannister etc… really boring.

Now a little the food… we had tapas for starter which we shared between four of us, it was gorgeous we had five spice pulled pork, hummus, halloumi cheese, potatoes with onion and leek, and prawn cocktail. Fair to say the prawn cocktail didn’t agree with me but everything else was gorgeous. For mains we had Sussex Turkey and Stuffing Pie which came with mash, sprouts and carrots it was quite nice but for me there was too much pastry. Then finally pudding I opted for the chocolate brownie which came with a caramel sauce! SO RICH! I couldn’t finish it all because of the richness of the chocolate but it were so nice and warming.

(No pictures of food because the lights were so dim and we only had candles to see with)

Hello Lovelies! What a wonderful Wednesday… Well it is for me! I’m FINALLY going back to Bristol which means I’m going to be seeing my boyfriend very soon!! I love him to pieces but wish we didn’t live so far apart I hate the long distance!

Another reason why it is wonderful is because as you may have guessed I’ve been nominated for the Liebster Award by Ashley from Ashley’s Antics! The Liebster Award is an online award which is awarded to bloggers by bloggers. That make sense? I hope so. After I was nominated by Ashley I wanted to know more about this award… fair to say I have no idea who originally started it but the rules have changed a lot over the years!

The Current Rules of the Liebster Award are:

1. Post 11 random facts about yourself

2.Answer 11 questions asked by the person who nominated you

3. Nominate 5-11 bloggers (with less than 200 followers)

4. Inform the bloggers that you have nominated them

11 Facts about myself

1. I was brought up by my grandparents so I’m a real softie. I cherish every moment with these two. They are my idols!

2. I am the clumsiest person you could possibly ever meet

3. I love to cook/bake but never have the time to do it and enjoy it!

4. I am extremely self conscious of my image due to scaring on my face which happen new years eve 2012 when I was attacked by a dog if you follow me on twitter you may have already seen the photo’s of my face!

5. I’m quiet unless I know you then I seriously never stop talking

6. I’m addicted to tea, lipstick and nail varnish and shoes.

7. I re-enact English Civil Wars. I don’t get embarrassed about it either because it’s some of the best weekends I’ve had in my life.

8. I love to get lost in a good book, I would rather sit and read than watch a film

9. I still have no idea what I’m doing with my eyebrows, they get plucked and a little brow product but really I have no clue and need guidance

10. It can take me a good 40 minutes to paint my nails as I end up with it everywhere!

11. I love my bed literally could lie in it all day but I hate sleeping in… tell me how that works.

Ashley’s Questions

1. Why did you start to blog? I started to blog simply because I wanted to improve myself as a person. After the dog attack to my face and having the trauma of all that plus cosmetic surgery on my face my confidence hit an all time low. My boyfriend was a rock through-out it all and after I had been following a few beauty blogs for a number of years I decided I wanted to make my mark. My first blog was actually called ‘blondebeautie’ before I got my own domain name and as soon as I had chosen it I hated it. I much prefer my blog now.

2. If you could have any superpower what would it be and why? This is easy! I would have a teleportation superpower because I would be able to think of a place and appear there! It would make it so much easier to see my boyfriend since we live 190 miles apart.

3. What is your fave beauty product? This is another easy one. It’s lipstick everytime.

4. Knowing what you know now what would you tell your 15 year old self? CLEANSE WOMAN, when I was growing up it was simply soap and water… my grandma swore by it.

5. Who is your favourite fictional character? I don’t know really, I read a lot but I can’t say I’ve ever had a favourite fictional character.

6. Are you a cat or a dog person? This we can all tell by now I’m a cat person.

7. If you were stuck on a desert island and could only have three items what would they be? hmm this is actually difficult, I’d have electricity, my phone and lipstick. That way I wouldn’t be without a beauty item and I would always be able to use my phone to contact someone 😉

8. Top three television programmes? Grey’s Anatomy, Pretty Little Liars and Hawaii Five-0

9. Guiltiest Pleasure? Scooby-doo the old cartoon ones from the 90s.

10. What is your favourite quote? the love of beauty is taste, the creation of beauty is art.

11. What is your current favourite blog?I would have to say Vivianne Does Makeup, I read her blog all the time. I love the way she writes and I love watching her youtube videos too!

Well it’s quite obvious what this tag is about and i actually had a lot of fun preparing for this along with the odd tantrum from my other half! (because i wouldn’t answer the questions for him) haha. I’ve decided to do this post because as we’ve been together two and a half years now i wanted to actually know if he knew the general stuff about me. so really its just me being nosey! But recently we’ve been speaking about moving in together and a lot of things are happening, we’re due to go on holiday at start of July and its made me really reflect on our relationship! How happy he has made me and how much i appreciate everything he does for me. So here is my boyfriend #.